Reputation management is designed for people or companies that want to rehabilitate their public image where it, apparently, matters most — on all those personal computers out there. Do not believe the hype: What happens in Vegas does not always stay in Vegas.

In a world where cameras and other recording devices are virtually everywhere, it seems like every momentary indiscretion is enshrined somewhere that is easily found through Google, Yahoo or YouTube. Remember that schoolteacher who warned you that misbehavior would go on your permanent record? Well, the permanent record is here. It is called the Internet.

But there are companies out there that — for a price — will go into your record and attempt to fix it. Or, perhaps more accurately, conceal it.

Those are the sorts of companies I have been hearing about on the radio. Urging listeners to call a toll-free number, they offer to check your online profile and perform a “reputation review.” Where any unflattering material is found, they will jump into action and — as one firm promised — “bury” it.

How it works is that these companies create all new profiles for their clients — glowing testimonials, of course — and then flood the Internet with that content, aiming to displace the negative stuff. In some cases, they also will contact the source of the negative content and urge that their clients be removed.

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The cost of this service can range from $1,000 to $10,000 or more, depending on how much burying you need done.

All of which makes sense, I suppose, if you or your firm have been been the victim of inaccurate criticism or false accusations. But after listening to the sales pitches on the radio, I started to wonder: What if all the bad stuff is actually true?

In other words, are we talking about setting the record straight or trying to rewrite history?

So I called a couple of companies and asked about the ethics of reputation management. Both assured me that they do not help criminals like sex offenders to hide their records from the public. But if the perpetrators of less sinister misdeeds are willing to write a check, the companies are ready to start burying the past.

“We do help people who have made mistakes,” said Leslie Hobbs of Reputation.com.

Or, as William DiAntonio of Reputation 911 put it: “Everyone deserves a second chance.”

So what is the lesson to be learned here? Do not believe everything you see on the Internet, I suppose. If you dig a little deeper, you might find that the truth has been buried.